Hanging Lake, in Western Colorado, is now designated as a national natural landmark. PHOTO VIA WIKIMEDIA AND THE CREATIVE COMMONS.

Hanging Lake, near Glenwood Springs, and the Golden Fossils Area tabbed for unique biological and geological features

By Summit Voice

SUMMIT COUNTY — There’s no shortage of scenic vistas along Interstate 70 as it slices through the Colorado high country, and as of last week, two landmarks near the highway — Hanging Lake and the Golden Fossils Area — are now designated as national natural landmarks.

The two sites were named by Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar on June 15, along with Arizona’s Barfoot Park, Washington’s Kahlotus Ridgetop, Round Top Butte, in Oregon, and The Island, also in Oregon.

“One of the major goals of President Obama’s America’s Great Outdoors initiative is to develop a conservation ethic for the 21st Century,” Salazar said in announcing the new sites. “By designating these remarkable sites in Arizona, Colorado, Oregon, and Washington as national natural landmarks, we help establish and pass down to future generations those awe-inspiring places that make America truly beautiful.” Continue reading “Colorado: Two sites along I-70 picked as national landmarks”→